GDHQNHL15_2pg-Buffalo Sabres 2

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defensive line. Gorges was brought
in from Montreal to replace
Christian Ehrhoff, who signed with
Pittsburgh after the Sabres bought
out his contract. Gorges will add a
veteran presence to the unit that
could serve Myers well.
Paired up behind them may be
a combination of a youthful talent
and a veteran signing. Rasmus
Ristolainen appeared in 34 games
as a 19-year old rookie. Although
the 6-4 Finnish defenseman
struggled early and was sent down to the Rochester Americans of the
AHL, Ristolainen showed growth in his second stint with the team.
He could be paired with Andrej Meszaros, who was signed in the
offseason after splitting time with the Philadelphia Flyers and Boston
Bruins, which included appearances in four playoff games for Boston.
Mike Weber appeared in 68 games for the team last season and Mark
Pysyk saw action in 44. They will likely be pushed for playing time by
the likes of Chad Ruhwedel, Andre Benoit, and 20-year old Jake McCabe.
Goaltending
The Sabres goaltending situation is unsettled. They traded long-time
goaltender Ryan Miller to the St. Louis Blues at the trade deadline and
then quickly dealt goalie Jaroslav Halak, who they received in return for
Miller, to the Washington Capitals for Michal Neuvirth.
Neuvirth played in just two games for the Sabres before being shut
down at the end of the season. He’s put up pedestrian numbers in his six
NHL seasons, posting a 2.67 GAA and .910 save percentage, and it’s tough
to see the 26-year old developing into a franchise goalie.
Jhonas Enroth played 28 games for the Sabres last year but he did not
excel either. He posted a 2.82 GAA and a .911 save percentage while the
Sabres won just four of those 28 games.
The end of the season saw a goalie rotation that included Matt
Hackett and Nathan Lieuwen. Twenty-one year old Andrey Makarov
was also called up from the ECHL but did not see any ice time. All five
guys will be in the mix, but Neuvirth and Enroth should see most of
the time in net.
Power Play
With their offensive struggles, it’s no surprise that the Sabres
were near the bottom of the league in power-play percentage. They
converted on just 36 of their 256 man advantages, and that 14.1 percent
conversion rate was second-to-last in the NHL. They also allowed five
shorthanded goals.
Hodgson had a good season leading the Sabres’ power play, as he
finished tied for 21st in the NHL with nine power-play goals. And a full
season of Matt Moulson, who also scored nine power-play goals, will
bolster the unit.
One of the team’s most prolific scorers, Steve Ott, was traded
at the deadline.
He scored six power-play goals in his 59 goals with the team.
But hope is that youngReinhart will fill the void. Reinhart scored
twelve of his 36 goals with the WHL Kootenay Ice on the powerplay.
But at 18-years-old, it’s unclear how much time he will spend
with the NHL club.
The team also got little production from the blue line. The team’s
defensemen scored just six goals on the power-play with three of them
coming off the stick of Myers.
Penalty Kill
The Sabres penalty
kill was a bright spot
for the team. Their
51 power-play goals
allowed ranked
eighth in the league,
although their 81.4
percent penaltykilling
percentage
ranked just 20th.
Young Girgensons
showed promise on
the unit and should
see time alongside
Drew Stafford and
Marcus Foligno.
The losses of
Ehrhoff and Matt
D’Agostino will force
some of the other
Sabres to take on their
ice time, especially on
special teams. But it
will give an opportunity to Ennis and Myers to take a bigger leadership
role on the club.
Prediction
It will be another rebuilding year in Buffalo, but there is some hope
for the Sabres. They brought in a solid group of veterans to go with
their young core. It will be easier to watch the Sabres this year, but
they still won’t win many games.
Scoreboard
2013-14 2012-13 2011-12 2010-11 2009-10
PLAYOFF FINISH DNQ DNQ DNQ Conf QF Conf QF
REGULAR SEASON 21-51-10 21-21-6 39-32-11 43-29-10 45-27-1
POINT TOTAL 52 48 89 96 100
SHOOTOUT RECORD 7-5 7-4 7-7 5-1 4-6
GOALS SCORED 157 125 218 245 235
GOALS ALLOWED 248 143 230 229 207
POWER-PLAY % 14.1 14.1 17.1 19.4 17.6
PENALTY KILL % 81.4 79.2 81.7 83.0 86.6
Matt Moulson
Bill Wippert/NHL/Getty Images